Wise Up Wednesday: Help Is At Hand – Please Don’t Ignore It!

Anders Glass Ceases Trading Owed £85,000

This week’s Wise Up Wednesday was inspired by a news piece in Construction Enquirer which describes how 89-year old firm, Anders Glass, has ceased trading because it was owed £85,000 by Bardsley Construction when they themseves went into administration.

The firm was being run by managing director Simon Anders, a third-generation member of the founding family, when it crashed.

It resonated with me because I see lots of Specialist Contractors, Trade Contractors and Subcontractors who are too trusting, or naive, or have been fortunate so far, and don’t think bad things will happen to them – until it’s too late of course!

Whatever the reason for it, unprotected firms are in for real trouble and much like the firm mentioned in the article they will find themselves failing too, and everything they have worked so hard for, in this case over 89 years is destroyed in the blink of an eye!

anders glass goes in administration

What Can You Do To Protect Your Business?

If you are unaware of the risks, then the potential consequences for your business can be catastrophic, and catastrophic failure usually comes about as a result of one or more of the following;

  • failing to think far enough ahead, not doing any marketing and then as work dries up, slashing prices just to get a job
  • failing to check out who you will actually be working for, or working for someone you have never worked for before
  • not checking to ensure that what you priced to do is what you have contracted to do
  • not understanding the risks inherent in the contract especially onerous terms and payment provisions
  • not taking appropriate and timely action when problems arise
  • failing to understand how to resolve disputes when they arise and who best to talk to
  • trying to go it alone when you should take professional advice
  • appointing the wrong kind of people to “resolve” the problem and thereby making the problem worse

Don’t Be Another Anders Glass – What’s The Answer?

As far as your business goes we do have the majority of the answers based on a lifetime in construction, including 29 years professional experience resolving disputes from the minor to the most complex and across every construction trade, on projects from apartments to nuclear processing plants.

And in the process we have recovered literally £millions of pounds for our members.

Our team can help you avoid the pitfalls and resolve all sorts of difficulties and settle disputes, especially if you’re not sure which route to take or feel you’re being denied what you’re rightfully owed.

WHAT WE CAN DO

Construction disputes of all shapes and sizes are not uncommon due to the complexity of construction – but there are plenty of different ways to settle the matter. Our specialist Construction Contracts Consultants are able to give expert advice and maximise your recovery in the following areas:

Reduced Interim Payments And Set Off

During most projects, interim payments are made throughout the construction period before final accounts are decided. If you feel your payment has been unjustly delayed, is too small, or has been reduced by deductions or set off’s, we can help you to resolve it before it escalates into an unmanageable amount.

Retention Recovery

Recovering retention money after a job is complete can sometimes be difficult, and Contractors love to make excuses to delay repayment or to avoid paying altogether. StreetwiseSubbie has helped countless Subcontractors get back the retention which is rightfully yours.

And we can do that on No Win No Fee basis too!

Final Account Disputes

Specialist Contractors final accounts are often attacked by Contractors even after things have been agreed during the job, and especially on large projects that have taken a long time to complete. Things can get very complicated, but we can help you ascertain what you should receive from a final account and help you resolve any reasons for non-payment.

Defects And Design

If you are involved in a dispute over defects, or design our specialists are on hand to ensure you are not getting the blame for something that isn’t your fault. Contact us for specialist construction advice and ensure your rights are protected.

Adjudication

Our Construction Contracts Consultants have assisted Specialist Contractors in literally hundreds of adjudication cases. We can help you achieve the best result from the adjudication process, or even avoid adjudication altogether. If you have been served a Notice of Adjudication, or would like to issue one yourself, it is crucial that you take the right advice as soon as possible, so please call our construction law specialist team for a free no obligation chat.

Dispute Resolution

Sometimes adjudication is not your best option. Our construction team can advise which method of construction dispute resolution is right for you, whether that be arbitration, mediation, litigation or indeed adjudication. Contact us today for advice on which course of action best fits your case.

Marketing Help And Support

From helping you think about and plan your strategy to actually doing it all for you, we can help ensure you get a steady flow of good quality enquiries.

Finding better quality (better paying) customers through good marketing can help you avoid becoming another statistic like Anders Glass.

IMPROVING THE LIVES OF SPECIALIST CONTRACTORS

Our objective is simple. We want to improve the lives of Specialist Contractors and we do that by bringing you cost effective resources to help make your life easier and your business more profitable.

By working with our Service Delivery Partners across the country, we bring you professional support in all the important areas of your business.

And, because we only work with Specialist Contractors you can be sure that we know the kind of problems you face, and the solutions that work best, which saves a lot of time, and a lot of money.

So please feel free to give us a call on 01773 712116 or email us via this link.

Anders Glass In Administration

Original story published in Construction Enquirer 19th February 2020

This is a timely reminder to all Subbies to check who owes money to the businesses that owe you money. Platinum Buddies get free access to Top Service Credit Reference Checking – that’s got to be worth the subscription fee alone. Find out more here.


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